2014 Paris Motor Show: BMW X5 eDrive Hybrid

BMW’s “green fleet” was represented at the 2014 Paris Motor Show not only by the BMW i3 and i8, but also by the BMW X5 eDrive Hybrid. With just a few months before its market debut, the plug-in hybrid X5 continues its auto show circuit and lands in Paris.

The X5 xDrive40e is the first hybrid X5 to be offered and it was previewed last year at the Frankfurt Auto Show.

The plugin hybrid will featured a four-cylinder petrol engine with turbocharging technology which generates, along with an electric motor, an output of 200 kW (272 hp). The standard sprint to 100 km/h is achieved by the BMW X5 xDrive40e in less than 7.0 seconds. Up to 120 km/h of pure electric drive is possible thanks to the 70 kW electric motor.

The seamless transition between electric, combined electric-petrol and pure petrol is remarkably smooth.

Visually, the plugin hybrid differs from the “regular X5″ mainly through an additional opening at the front left fender where the engineers placed a power connector for charging the high-voltage battery, which is housed in the rear of the vehicle.

To manage battery capacity BMW has created three drive modes for the X5 eDrive, Intelligent Hybrid, Pure Electric, and Save Battery. It is the Save Battery mode that highlights how BMW expects the vehicle to be used. Going into Save Battery mode restricts the use of battery capacity – allowing for a reserve to complete a journey in pure electric mode inside a city core for example.